Michael J Fox Foundation aids Parkinson’s clinical trial

Cynapsus Therapeutics and The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) are working together to incorporate wearable device technology and "big data" approaches to a Parkinson’s clinical trial

This is a pilot effort to understand how clinical studies can harness data science approaches to objectively measure disease progression with the goal of speeding progress toward breakthroughs in drug development.

The project builds on MJFF's ongoing data science partnership with Intel Corporation, launched in August 2014, to develop platforms for the storage of large volumes of patient-generated data and algorithms to glean insights from this data.

Anthony Giovinazzo, president and CEO of Cynapsus, said: "This strategic alliance with The Michael J. Fox Foundation and the use of technology-enabled research solutions builds on our standing collaborative relationship as well as our individual commitments to change the lives of people with Parkinson's disease.

"Employing wearable technology to collect data in clinical trials has enormous potential to improve our understanding of how drugs and other treatments impact patients living with the debilitating symptoms of this disease."

Todd Sherer, chief executive officer of MJFF, said: "Clinical studies are the most expensive and time-consuming stages of drug development.

“Data science approaches hold the potential to accelerate the pace of progress by allowing drug developers to objectively gather and analyse unprecedented volumes of data and more quickly reveal insights about a potential new treatment.

“We're optimistic about the potential of this technology to help speed breakthroughs patients need."

Intel fellow Eric Dishman, general manager of health and life sciences at Intel, said, "Amassing valuable objective data and turning it into insightful information can lead to advances in how new therapeutics are developed.

“This implementation of a consumer wearable and an analytics platform, developed by The Michael J. Fox Foundation and Intel for use in Parkinson's disease research, is a great example of interdisciplinary collaboration harnessing the power of data to advance disease research while bringing value to patients.